Is exactly, precisely the spectacle we have been presented with in Madison, Wisconsin the past week or so.

A special interest pressure group that is firmly convinced of the total moral virtue of its position, demands that the much larger general public bow to its demands--no matter what those demands might be.

A while ago, there was a movie entitled Wag The Dog.

In Madison, Wisconsin, we see the tail of public employee unions attempting to not only wag the dog of the Wisconsin people, but decide which road down which that dog (or badger, as the case may be) will walk.

Further evidence of the moral bankruptcy of the position of the public employee unions is that even Franklin Delano Roosevelt didn't think that they were a good idea. The guy who implemented the New Deal--who thought that Social Security was a good idea--didn't think that collective bargaining for government workers was a good idea.

Let that sink in for a minute, before you continue Sharpie-ing the Hitler moustache onto Wisconsin Governor Walker's picture.

The fact is, the fundamental fact of live of organized labor is an adversarial relationship between the union, purporting to represent "the workers," and on the other side of the table, "the management."

But in a working republic based on democratic principles, the ultimate management of the government is the people themselves.

Therefore, a public employee union is by definition in an adversarial relationship with the people--or, in other words, acting in opposition to the public interest. THAT is why public employee unions should never be allowed to exist, and where they currently exist, they should be immediately disbanded.

There is a place for organized labor. There are private companies that do attempt to unfairly exploit workers. But, it must be recognized that public employee unions will always--ALWAYS develop to the point where they attempt to unfairly exploit their employers--the public. This has happened in Wisconsin, and has happened all throughout this country.

Public employee unions today are not the exploited. They are the exploiters.

"The economy is in a much stronger position to handle” rising oil prices, Tim Geithner said today during a Bloomberg Breakfast in Washington. “Central banks have a lot of experience in managing these things."

From Bloomberg via Zero Hedge.

We Are So Screwed.

Recall, if you will, Timothy Geithner is the guy who was unable to comprehend the nuances of TurboTax.

Pardon me if my confidence in central bankers and central planners to competently manage the entire world's economy--despite centuries of evidence that central planning inevitably results in disaster--pardon me if my confidence in these modern mandarins is somewhat lacking.

Op-ed: Raise your glass to some good news on alcohol.

Holding everything else equal, we found that someone who drinks earns 10 percent more on average than someone who does not. We also found that men who reported going to a bar at least once in the last month earn an additional 7 percent. That's 17 percent more money than people who don't go out or drink.

There are some people, like my Snookums, who can easily slide into social interactions with strangers without requiring the "social lubricant" of alcohol. And then there are the rest of us.

Snookums and I loved St. Helena--supposedly the most remote island on Earth, whose only connection to the rest of the world was the once-monthly British Mail ship, the St. Helena.

According to this article, St. Helena is getting an airstrip.

Jamestown, St. Helena

On the one hand, bully for them! On the other hand, I hope it doesn't ruin the beautiful, simple charm that the village of Jamestown had when we visited it a couple of years ago. The Saints--residents of St. Helena--will be delighted, though. They really, really, really resented the decision of the previous British Government to cancel plans to build the airport.

Seen on Craigslist:

IN WALKS THE VILLAGE IDIOT, AND HIS FACE IS ALL AGLOW. He’s been up all night listening to Mohammed’s radio.
I HEARD THE GENERAL, WHISPERING TO HIS AIDE DE CAMP: “Be watchful for Mohammed’s lamp.”
EVERYBODY’S DESPERATE, TRYING TO MAKE ENDS MEET. Work all day, still can’t pay the price of gasoline and meat.
YOU’VE BEEN UP ALL NIGHT, JUST LISTENING FOR HIS DRUM: Hoping that the righteous might just, might just, might just, might just come.

The way things are going, the Sage of Knoxville will have more of this . . .

In case you hadn't noticed . . .
As of right now, a huge swath of the country is under some kind of winter weather statement or advisory (shown in white).

From Weather Underground

The TSA and the Department of Homeland Security look like good places to start. Other departments can do what these Keystone Cops are supposed to, but aren't.

Via Insty.

Then we can move on to other monstrosities and clusterf*cks like the Department of Education, the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Elections Commission, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Endowment for the Arts, . . .

Not with a scalpel, but with an axe . . .

Where is the offended outrage from our friends on the left at this ridiculously incivil outburst, where a Congressmen accuse his fellow House members of being, essentially, members of the German Nazi party of Adolph Hitler? Surely anything that pegs the Godwin's Law meter is a textbook example of incivil discourse, isn't it?

Of course, there will be no expressions of disapproval from the leftist mainstream media or the socialist Democrats. This guy is just saying what they all really think.

The only appropriate, civil response is: BITE ME.

Playtime is over, dickweeds. You've been taking advantage of the better nature and, frankly, the superior morality of your political opponents and victims for far too long.

Guess what? You've gone too far.

You have sown the wind, and you shall reap the whirlwind. Dickweeds.

You want civility?

You first.

See, there's a very, very popular saying and sentiment among the regular people, the Country Class, the just-plain-folks that you self-styled leftist/"progressive"/elitists so clearly despise. It is:

"Never start a fight. But always finish one."

Now, my fellow Americans who have nothing but contempt and disdain for so many of your own countrymen . . . would any--ANY of you care to "revise and extend your remarks?"

“We’ve had some incidents where TSA authorities think that congresspeople should be treated like everybody else,” he said. “Well, the fact of the matter is, we are held to a higher standard in so many other areas, and I think we need to take a hard look at exactly how the TSA interact with members of Congress.”

Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.), assistant minority leader in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Can't you just feel the sense of entitlement oozing from this guy?

Back of the line, buddy.